State won't change 9-11Memorial - for now

Phoenix, AZ – Legislators won't tinker with the phrases on the state's 9-11 Memorial -- at least not this year. Arizona Public Radio's Howard Fischer explains.

Rep. John Kavanagh is pushing to remove a dozen of the 54 sayingson the memorial which he says are too controversial. One says youdon't win battles of terrorism with more battles. He said thatinsults soldiers who went to Afghanistan to chase down al-Qaidaleaders. Another says foreign-born Americans afraid, which hethinks reflects badly on Arizonans. And a third references acongressional investigation into why the FBI and CIA did notforesee the attack. But Sen. Albert Hale said memorials mustconsider all viewpoints. Take what he said is known as themassacre at Little Big Horn.

(It wasn't a massacre in my opinion because it was a battle thatwas won by the Indian. So to me it should be a battle that waslost by Custer and the United States.)

And Sen. Karen Johnson said she does not want a sanitized versionof history she believes is still being written.

(There's many of us that feel there's been a cover-up. Andthere's a lot of statements on that 9-11 memorial that reflect alot of our views that we have about it. And I think all of thoseneed to be represented.)

In the end Kavanagh's proposal died when a majority of themembers of the Senate Appropriations Committee refused to mandatethe changes.